Published

How Can Students Improve Their English?
Yeon Hyeon Middle School Newspaper, June 2010
Rosalyn Laiken, 2nd and 3rd grade English Teacher


Hello!
Nice to meet you. How are you?
I’m fine thank you, and you?

This is how many Korean students say hello in English. It is the polite greeting that everyone learns in elementary school and it never changes. After more than 2 months of teaching them new ways to describe how they are feeling, my students are still saying they're fine thank you and you? How can students improve their English skills to feel comfortable saying much more than these three main lines?

The easiest and fastest way to do this is for students to read, listen and speak English! Joining English community groups or classes such as sports teams, dance, cooking, art, and book clubs is a fun way to meet and become friends with native English speakers. If this is not possible then the next best solution is to watch English television, movies, and even listen to English radio. Some of my advanced students have bashfully admitted they regularly watch CNN, Jeopardy, and other popular educational North American TV shows. This amazes me because these shows challenge the intelligence of many native English speakers! There are several radio stations in Korea that have mini English lessons and play English popular songs for students who enjoy listening to music.

Deciding on the method to improve English skills is the first step, and the methods should continuously change in a student’s learning routine. It is best to do different things each day to help keep the various relationships between each area active. In other words, don't just study grammar. Commitment is important as well, so students need to make learning English a habit. Try to learn something every day. It is much better to study (or read, or listen to English news, etc.) 10 minutes each day than to study for 2 hours once a week.

Once Korean students meet native speakers and begin practicing their English in a fun and open environment, they may find that one of the biggest problems is speed. Native speakers tend to speak very quickly; here are some practical tips to get native speakers of English to slow down!

1. Immediately ask the person to speak slowly.
2. When taking note of a name or important information, repeat each piece of information as the person speaks.
3. Do not say you have understood if you have not. Ask the person to repeat until you have understood.

There are thousands of online resources as well to help students practice reading, listening and speaking English. Our students are big fans of the PC Bong; why not make some of that time more educational? There are a multitude of games, worksheets, pronunciation guides, quizzes, picture dictionaries, and short stories available to everyone. Google is a marvelous online tool: I received over 23,800,000 results when researching for tips to include in this article!

The most important advice I have realized is this: Be patient - remember that learning a language is a gradual process - it does not happen overnight.

Good luck, have fun and enjoy learning English ^^

Video pen pals

I am so proud of this video I made for my school as a video pen pal project :) Enjoy! If you know of any schools who want to participate in this project with mine, let me know!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0UhLBq81yg

Catching up

It's been many weeks since my last blog entry. I'm sorry to those who have been waiting on the edge of their seats for an update. I have been filling my days and nights with so many activities that by the time I get home I'm a zombie. Especially when I've fallen asleep on the metro and missed my stop, several times. Some nights I'm surprised I can even find my bed in my 1 bedroom apartment. I'm not complaining, this is the life I have chosen and it's exceeding all of my expectations :) I've made some notes in the past few weeks, so here I go trying to catch up... lol what else is new!?

After my last entry at the teacher orientation training, I went straight to Hongdae with my new crew made up of 3 Americans, 1 Kiwi, 1 chick from South Africa and me, the Cannuck. we got along so well, we never needed to try with each other, kindred sprits :) These are the traditional Korean war masks we made at orientation.



Hongdae is a popular artsy, musically-infused, late night clubbin, foreigner-friendly area in Seoul. We planned to stay for the weekend at a hostel close to all the action. I was so impressed with the live band in the park on our first night out. They caught our attention with their awesome drumming beats, the huge crowd and their covers of John Mayer, Rolling Stones and several other great American bands. The tap dancing battle invigorated my urge to take up tap dancing again. Park, the manager at our hostel took care of us that night by being our tour guide and getting us to try dried squid - with mixed reviews :P

We ate at a traditional Korean bbq restaurant for dinner at midnight, met up with more friends throughout the evening and the rest of that 1st night was a blur as we danced our way through 3 different clubs until the sun came up. Had breakfast at a great lil Korean place that made the best bibimbap I have tried yet.





Dragged our feet in the glaring but beautiful sunshine all the way back to our hostel (8 min walk?) and crashed in a bunk bed more which was 1000% more comfortable than my rock at my apartment! We got up several hours later to explore Hongdae in the daylight hours, had breakfast/lunch at Quiznos around 4 pm, which tasted just like Quiznos back home. We had intended to get on a tour bus of Seoul but instead found our way walking through the quaint streets of Hongdae, happy with taking it easy and buying knicknacks along the way. Oh, and that weekend I started the best/worst habbit I've picked up so far: ICE CREAM!!! There was one day that I had 3 ice creams in a matter of 4 hours....I'm in shock and awe over my ability to ingest so much of it and always craving more. I loved bumping into the Toronto Bagel Company, but didn't try any bagels - didn't know the origin of those bagels...



That night followed our pattern we had been turning into a nightly ritual - late late dinner, meet up with friends at or after midnight, hit the club & party scene until the sun rose and eating the same bibimbap breakfast at 8 am. We were literally fried by Sunday morning. I don't know how I was able to keep that pace going for 5 days straight, but that must have been one of the #1 factors that set off my body into a bronchial infectitious state that I'm still waiting to get over, already 6 weeks later.

Since that 1st weekend in Hongdae I've experienced so many glorious activities. I introduced poutine (a Franco-Canadian delicious and extremely unhealthy french fry, gravy & cheese curd concoction) to the owner of an awesome local bar popular with foreigners called Happidus;



I learned how to use my rice cooker (which didn't come with any instructions, just Korean text on a seemingly easy-to-operate device with one main button but many other lil buttons that make no sense whatsoever) by trading cherry tomatoes for hard boiled eggs with a middle aged Korean neighbour who doesn't speak a lick of English;



Went to the Retro Milanga at the Seoul Tango Festival and met people named Fish (a girl), Johnny, Betty and Daisy (a guy). I stayed off to the side of the busy dance floor to avoid hurting anyone, and enjoyed the international dancers strut their stuff in the competition at the end of the night;



My fave international performers out of 9 who danced at the Seoul Tango Festival Retro Milonga, April 30, 2010.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sRKCR_TcGA&feature=PlayList&p=D2A1A5D369B57370&playnext_from=PL&index=3

I tried (and fell in love) with hot yoga; went to the World DJ Festival where we danced from 2 pm on Saturday until 6 am on Sunday only to break for a 45 min nap; hiked an "easy" mountain near my school with some other teachers and hiked Dobongsan (san = mountain) north of Seoul - I swear I saw the entire city of Seoul for so many miles and I could see where the earth curved; shopping in traditional & high fashion markets such as Nandemeun & Gangnam; went to an indoor and outdoor amusement park called Lotte World (Korea's version of Disneyland) at night; went to the lantern festival that took over the main streets in Insadong (a traditional Buddhist & historically preserved area in Seoul); won big at the racetrack (which were extremely quiet considering the building held thousands of people! The horse races are Korean's only form of legal gambling and they were SERIOUS); visited the Anyang Art Park with my school's photography club, and travelled to TAIPEI, TAIWAN for a weekend!!!



My friend Harlem and I went to Taipei over the May long weekend for Buddha's birthday. It was a short 3 hr flight, but a completely different world. She missed the flight on Thursday night so I had a day to roam on my own and met up with her on Friday night for a fun-filled action packed weekend. Here are my notes from that trip...

Last night I arrived into Taipei in 32 deg C heat and humidity, put down my bag, changed and met a cool young traveller from Singapore who was also staying at my hostel and also wanted to hit the town. Antonio and I got along right away and he could speak Chinese so we had a fun night going to a bar, playing pool and finding a great breakfast joint at 4:30 am!

Right now I'm sitting comfortably in an air conditioned train in Taipei. I woke up minutes before I had to run here with the owner of the hostel in her flip flops (shameless promotion for TaiwanMex hostel!!), she was so nice to check the train schedule before I woke up and made sure I knew where to go. I think I'm headed east to Hualien, where I plan to rent a scooter & ride up to the summit of Tarako Gorge, visit a natural hot spring and enjoy the sun setting over Taiwan. It makes sense for me to write all this down now as I realize I'm on this train with 3 hours to kill and no book to read. I've just been asked to move seats because apparently there is assigned seating so I've had to take my delicious veggetarian meal that I just bought on the train for about $1.50 Cdn and my 20 kg bag (I know, it's just a 3 day weekend - but I'm a Toronto girl at heart) over to another empty seat. I have landed next to a cute Taiwainese Buddhist temple-enthusiast who is wooing me to join her at the Ling Jiou Mountain Buddhist temple. I have 5 min to decide and she offered to buy my ticket to keep going to Hualien after the detour - she just said: "sometimes interference in life works out for the best". Ok, I'm sold....



That was the best detour EVER! We bathed little statues of Buddha - steaming water is used to clean the bad karma from our lives, bowed down 3 times in front of the Burmese White Jade Buddha, a statue that was lost for more than 40 years and was recovered by the temple's master after WWII. It was raining lightly almost the entire 2 hours I was there, which I didn't mind at all because I was in Buddhist paradise. Rain helps raise the tide and grow the crops, it also cleans our souls. Bowing before the Buddhist statues from Thailand made from gold and respectfully walking around the right side of the Tibetian Buddha was supposed to enhance our ability to understand the origin of ourselves as one with Buddha. After that enlightening afternoon, I ended up getting off at the wrong station (I wanted Sinchang and jumped off at Sichang). I tried to reason with the ticket agent who didn't speak English that I needed to get back on the next train, but only after enlisting the help of a nice young man at the nearby post office and his English-speaking friend on his cell did I realize there wouldn't be another train for several hours and I wanted to make my way back to Taipei that night. I couldn't have asked for better luck when the young guy offered to drive me on his scooter to the nearest bus station so I still ended up on a scooter that day :)





We filled Saturday in Taipei with a trip to a Confucius and Buddhist temple, Taipei Palace Museum, hot springs, saw a Taiwanese percussion group who shared the stage with Peking opera actors and tap dancers in a reinterpretation of the traditional Chinese story “MuLan” at the National Theater Hall in Taipei.



We were still going strong by 11 pm when we ended up in Shilin Market - the biggest night market in Taiwan. We shopped until we dropped, enjoyed traditional Taiwanese eats (including amaaaaaazing creamy ice - not unlike my latest Korean addiction) and went back to our hostel to watch the sun rise on our rooftop with a laptop and snacks from the Family Mart downstairs.



I spent Sunday with a guy from Amsterdam who was also staying at our hostel, we went to a dormant volcano in the rain and I must have been in heaven because the place was so serene and delightfully peaceful that I didn't mind again how I got stuck in the rain. Taipei is so humid that the rain is welcoming and I understand now why they say it's cleansing :)





Since Taipei, I went to the stunning Steve McCurry "Unguarded Moments" photography exhibit in Seoul (he is the National Geographic photog most known for the Afghan Girl); saw a hilarious live performance called Nanta (cross between Stomp and Blue Man Group with a cooking theme), visited the Huaseong Fortress in Suwon, and took a trip down to Busan (the other major city in South Korea with all the awesome beaches). Busan was wonderful - we stayed in love motels, ate dinner in the Jagalchi Fish Market, hiked through two major Buddhist temples called Beomosa and Yong Gung which was breathtakingly situated right on the East Sea that lies between Korea and Japan, had my first experience at a hot spring spa where female nudity is as natural as breathing, visited all three major beaches (Haeundae Beach was hosting the annual sand festival with amazingly huge sand castles, went to Gwangalli Beach for beach volleyball and FREE seadoo rides & waterskiing, and I enjoyed Songjong Beach solo with my book and very little sunscreen so I ultimately got my unavoidable first burn of the summer right along my gluteous maximus). I truly enjoyed the more laid-back attitude of Busan, but I was happy to come home to bustling Seoul.



I want to buy a used bicycle and guitar and learn how to breakdance from one of my students (she's amazing at popping, performed in front of the whole school of 1700 students and 100 teachers for the Teacher's Day ceremony). I'm also starting to plan my summer vacation with two of my best friends from back home and my sister who are coming to visit in August! We have been brainstorming on which Asian countries we want to visit -perhaps Malaysia, Signapore, Vietnam, Philippines, Japan and/or Thailand and then around Korea.

Until then, I hope everyone who reads this is doing well and enjoying your summer so far!

sensory overload

Hi there, its been a while, too long actually, I know I've been neglecting you, and all of the other 7 people reading my blog to date...so I'm sorry. I've been having the TIME OF MY LIFE!!!!!!

I'm sitting in a quiet, dark, almost empty computer lab at a retreat where I'm being "trained" by my provincial board of education. If you ask me, this is an excuse to get all the teachers in our province together for a 3-day, 2-night party where we are required to go to lessons about Korean vs. Western culture and listen to the history of teaching by day but get to meet and make some crazy serious friendships & get drnnnnk off cheap beer by night. Honestly, it's not so bad, I just came from a good run/hike up the side of the mountain cuz we're in the middle of nowhere but its insanely beautiful here, it really takes my breath away. The cherry blossoms have bloomed, and I climbed up a mini version of Grouse Mountain that unfolded in a glorious scene of open water, birds chirping, forest sounds doing their thing, the whole deal. I still have not had an opportunity to upload my hundreds of pics that are stuck on my camera from the last two weeks, but at least I should share an image I found on Google that somewhat represents the absolute stunning beauty I have experienced here so you can get a taste of what I mean.



So I really have about 2 min before I should go back to my room, shower and get ready for another long day of lectures that starts in about half an hour. I'm actually looking forward to presenting my demo lesson today that I planned last night with my partner until 9 pm like true nerds, its about "Who's on first" - as in the Abbott and Costello baseball skit, but its actually only the best 45 sec of the piece using Yoda and Jar Jar as the two main characters :) Please check it out when you have a moment, its pretty funny. Our demo lesson is all about numbers, so we give them the clip then walk them through an AMAAAAZING PowerPoint lesson about going shopping, what else would Koreans want to associate with first floor, second floor, third floor other than the local E-Mart!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gT17j0YotDg

Ok, the whole reason of me coming in here (and in true Rosalyn fashion, I leave the meat until the end when I have already run out of time) was to give a quick update on life so far, just to say that I have made some use of this blog site and have kept you informed of how I'm doing. Here are some of my observations on life in Korea:

1. My apartment is one room. It's RIGHT behind the subway tracks, so I hear trains every 5 min when I'm home, except between the hrs of 12 am and 5:30 am, thank GOD. It's getting pretty cozy, I've got almost everything I need; single bed (booo, so many people lucked out with a double bed!), desk (but no chair yet), sweet chocolate leather couch, microwave (which I know how to turn on to 14 min and that's IT), washing machine (which looks a LOT more complicated than it really is, but really you just need to push the big button in the middle then pres Play :), a shower door in my bathroom (but the water still goes under the door and into the floor of the bathroom where it then goes into the drain under the sink, so the floor still gets completely drenched), ample closet space, vacuum, rice cooker (which I have yet to try or figure out, but I finally found rice on a recent quest with my new friend Becca, and had to pay the equivalent of $15!! I mean, C'MON - am I not in ASIA????), the walls are pretty thin so I know when my neighbour is listening to Boyz II Men / Mariah Carey (almost every morning, except for the morning when JUSTIN BIEBER woke me up!!! I'm so incredibly proud of that kid!! you KNOW you've made it in the music biz when you're on Korean radio!!), my floor is heated and I actually like the one room concept, its pretty easy to keep clean :)

2. People wear face masks here. Like the SARS or H1N1 mask. I'm not sure why - might be because of their fear that the yellow dust flowing in from China will make them sick, might be because they are already sick and don't want to pass it around, perhaps they think this will save them from Fan Death (if you are not familiar with the concept, please google it), or might just be because they like the fun and sometimes odd designs....



3. Korea has an excellent subway system, there are at least 9 lines that I know of that connect all of Seoul to many of the suburbs in the surrounding area. All stops are clearly labelled with billingual signage, some even have safety guards on the newer platforms that I really thought were meant to keep anything flying off the train from hitting me, but they are really meant to deter the 35 PEOPLE A DAY who committ suicide in this country from doing so at the subway. Public transportation is meant for listening (to music, or quietly speaking on your cell phone - which works here underground!!) not talking. I have received some seriously dirty looks by talking at a normal decible (well, I'm sure some of my friends wouldn't believe that, but it's TRUE!) from the ahjemmas and other older Koreans who are all about pushing me aside to get out the door before everyone else, regardless of where they are standing on the train.

4. Cab drivers are INSANE. Dangerous at best and downright suicidal at worst; my first clubbing experience on my first weekend here was awesome, and then the cab ride back was deathly scary (don't worry fam - I'm alive and doing just fine, but I will NOT do that again!!) the guy drove through at least 16 red lights at top speed....hmmmm, maybe I should stop explaining that one...

5. LG is serious here - they are involved in some way on EVERYTHING! Buildings, cell phones (hardware AND service providers), computers (obviously), subway platforms, supermarkets, fruit...well, not really, but pretty much.

6. TEACHING! lol I almost forgot to mention that one! well, it's been fun so far. I'm a complete rockstaaaaa at school, they say hi to me all the time, then giggle and run away, even the boys. I teach 14-16 yr olds at a middle school (but they say they are one year older than we do here because they consider the 9 months in the womb as their first year of life) and I already knew who the trouble makers were on the 1st day, many of the kids sleep or aren't paying attention because they are completely drained from going to public school during the days Monday - Saturday and then a private school in the evenings until at least 9 pm, some of them even get home at 11 pm and THEN they start their homework! The Korean teachers and staff at my school are awesome, they are incredibly supportive and love sharing food and Korean life with me; I've already been to a kayugum lesson (traditional Korean instrument) with my Korean co-teacher, the Korean National Institute of Food, a contemporary/modern dance performance at the Seoul Arts Centre (that one wasn't with my co-teacher, but my new friend Harlem), a ball hockey league at the Olympic Sports Complex with a bunch of foreigners - many of whome happen to be of the male persuasion... ok, well this isn't about teaching anymore, but you get the idea that I've been busy lately :P



7. ummm, I know I have a LOT more observations that I want to share with you, however I just looked at the time, and now I am 14 min late for breakfast. POOP.












I better go, its been a slice y'all. My beautiful roomie (and newest friend in Korea) Renee just sat down beside me in this lovely PC Bong to work on her demo lesson because her partner has gone AWOL and she needs to get it done. So that means the shower is free!

See ya :) Until next time, and Kamsa Hamida (thanks for reading!!)

p.s. the following pic was taken of me on my 1st full day in this crazy country at a local Buddhist Temple by my first Korean local friend who I met on the 14 hr plane ride over here. It was the nicest and most touching warm welcome I could have dreamt of having in Korea, because she invited me to join her and her parents to visit this temple and meet all their friends there. She had not seen her mother in 4 YEARS and she invited me to join them. We met up with two monks, one of whome is American, at least 6f6" tall, completely caucasian, who can speak like any Korean you meet on the street and gave me all sorts of great advice on checking out Seoul using my new map of the city!! It was a great day :)

Hello from Korea :)

I made it to Korea safe and sound :)

The flight was good, I lucked out with getting a seat in the emergency exit row. Korean Air is such a luxurious airline - got my own personal tv, they served such tasty food and free wine :) and it was a smooth easy non-stop flight. There were even individually wrapped toothbrushes & toothpaste in the bathroom :) I sat beside a really nice 25-yr old girl on the plane who is from Seoul and has been living in Toronto for the last few years because she went to York University and now works at a Scotiabank, her family is going to a Buddhist temple tomorrow in my city and she invited me along! She said this temple opens its doors to everyone and she has known those monks since she was a little girl. I'm so honoured that she would invite me to spend time with her family since she hasn't seen her mom in 4 years. The flight arrived in Seoul 30 min early, I had no trouble getting through customs or with my luggage and my recruiters had arranged for a man named Kim (this was probably his last name, its a very common name here) was waiting for me with my name on a sign. The 1 hr drive from the airport zipped by, it was 3 am so very dark but I saw many pockets of neon lights and activity along the highway over the water.

The weather today is a sunny 5 deg C, which apparently is nice for this time of year, I'm jealous of Toronto weather which I heard was supposed to be close to 25!!

My apartment is nice, its basically one room with a kitchen along the entrance hallway and a single bed (with a comforter and pillow :) the bathroom has a stand-up shower (with a door :) I just need to figure out how to turn on the hot water! I have a nice LG flat screen TV, an iron, vacuum, microwave, stove top and lots of closets/storage space. The view from my large wall of windows is beautiful, I can see part of the city with huge mountains right behind the train tracks and street. Trains go past pretty frequently, but the noise didn't bother me last night, I can sleep through anything :) I have met two other foreign teachers on my floor, they showed me how to get to this internet cafe. Everyone seems so nice here and willing to help, even if they are Korean and don't speak English.

I purchased an international phone card at the airport but don't know how to use it yet. I actually had a bit of an adventure this morning driving around the neighbourhood with a man who I just met at the local pharmacy trying to find a store that sells the same card, but we couldn't find anyone to help us. So I'm at an internet cafe just down the street because I also don't have internet set up in my apartment. I'm meeting the other English teacher at my school this afternoon so he can show me around the city and how to get to school. I will need to buy another adapter because I left mine at home in my mad rush of packing, among many other things that hopefully my parents won't mind sending to me. For breakfast this morning, I bought a box of cereal (looks like Kellogs), large package of strawberries and a carton of soy milk. Along with buying paper cups and spoons, that cost me 10200 KRW, around $10 Cdn. I saw a Parisian cafe around the corner so I'll check them out for lunch. The convenience store also sold tons of pre-packaged Korean food but I have no idea what they are so I will ask the other teacher at my school where he buys groceries and what is what. There is a seafood restaurant or maybe its a market right outside my apartment with a live fish and octopus tank, very cool looking, but I think I'll pass on the highly authentic fresh fish.

I will upload pictures once I get internet access and an adapter. I'm surrounded right now by about 13 young boys playing some serious fighting games online, and since it's such a nice day I should really get outside. I am starting school on Monday and I'm going to an Arrival Workshop on Wednesday, can't wait to get started!

Ciao for now :)

April Fool

My Korean visa is finally being processed!! This means that my latest rescheduled flight date - Thursday April 1st, should be the one that sticks. Wow, its really happening, no turning back now...

I plan on having an open mind and seeking new experiences, learning from all sorts of new people, trying new foods, and living among new cultures. Or I'm just a fool who thinks she can take a break from "real life" to teach English to some 15 yr old Korean kids, for fun.

My apartment is almost entirely empty, which saddens me but also reaffirms this choice I have made. Only one more full day until my subletter moves in. Everything is basically packed, just need to do some major cleaning tomorrow. I'm so happy to have found a subletter so that I can keep my apartment :) I love my area: it radiates this great combination of vintage stores, live music, and yummy cafés in a downtown bustling hot spot mixed with the quiet calm of a small community living by the lake. It will be so nice to come home to this place after my time far far away.

When will I return? what will I do when I get back? These are great questions, my friends. I have no idea :) As soon as I figure it out, I'll let you know.

its not goodbye

so, packing...

it's one thing to set up the biggest move of my life, and then actually moving is a whole other ball game. but many people have done this before me, as will many after me. i have moved 7 times in the past 11 years. best practice? get someone else to do the work :P there's so much to think about! soooo many people who need a goodbye, or rather, see you later.

its crunchtime - serious packing is necessary to make this happen. my flight is reserved for tuesday. i still dont have my visa. i need to get organized. i need to buy toothpaste. i cant believe this time has finally come.

thank goodness for cell phones, email, msn, facebook, linkedin, magic jack, texting, skype, blogs - the world is so much smaller these days :)

alrighty, not much packing done today. now i'm heading out to meet a friend....procrastination is something i will think about doing later.